Planning a Trip

Getting There

The Nice international airport (tel. 08-20-42-33-33) is a 30-minute drive northeast. Buses pick up passengers at the airport every 40 minutes during the day and drop them at the Gare Routière, place de l'Hôtel de Ville (tel. 04-93-45-20-08). The fare is 6€ ($7.80).

Trains from the other Mediterranean resorts, Paris, and the rest of France arrive frequently throughout the day. By train, Cannes is 15 minutes from Antibes and 35 minutes from Nice. The TGV from Paris via Marseille reaches Cannes in about 5 1/2 to 6 breathless hours. The one-way fare from Paris is about 108€ to 110€ ($140-$143). For rail information and schedules, call tel. 36-35, or visit www.voyages-sncf.com.

Rapide Côte d'Azur, place de l'Hôtel de Ville, Cannes (tel. 04-93-39-70-30), offers bus service to Nice and back every 20 minutes during the day (trip time: 1 1/2 hr.). The one-way fare is 6€ ($7.80). Bus service from Antibes operates every half-hour.

By car from Marseille, take A51 north to Aix-en-Provence, continuing along A8 east to Cannes. From Nice, follow A8 southwest to Cannes.

Visitor Information

The Office de Tourisme is at 1 bd. De La Croisette (tel. 04-93-39-24-53; fax 04-92-99-84-23; www.cannes.fr).

Special Events

The International Film Festival at the Palais des Festivals on promenade de la Croisette is in the end of May. It attracts not only film stars but also seemingly every photographer in the world. You have a better chance of being named prime minister of France than you do of attending one of the major screenings. (Hotel rooms and tables at restaurants are equally scarce during the festival.) But the people-watching is fabulous. If you find yourself here at the right time, you can join the thousands who line up in front of the Palais des Festivals, where the premieres are held. With paparazzi shouting and gendarmes holding back fans, the guests parade along the red carpet, stopping for a moment to strike a pose. C'est Cannes!

You may be able to get tickets for some of the lesser films, which play 24 hours. For information visit www.festival-cannes.org.